


Self care for the fallen Buffy

by Lostiesgirl



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fix-It of Sorts, Healing, Hurt Buffy Summers, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Valentine's Day Fluff, Valentine's day Fic-a-ton, Valentine's day Fic-a-ton 2019
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-01
Updated: 2019-01-31
Packaged: 2019-10-20 05:13:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 526
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17616167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lostiesgirl/pseuds/Lostiesgirl
Summary: An Au set during Season Six. Coming back to life would be horrifying to comprehend, especially from something pretty close to Heaven. In a world where Willow, Xander, Anya, and Tara found Buffy a bit later in 'Afterlife', Buffy starts to go on her journey to adjust back in the land of the living.





	Self care for the fallen Buffy

**Author's Note:**

> I will be cross posting this at Fanfiction.net, and might be infrequently posting this when I can. I am a big fan and defender of season 6, I thought it did went too dark, but it was cool. I hope that maybe I can convince some of you of the same, but meh.

_The battle is won, we sound our victory cheer, where do we go, from here?_

We’ve heard the story.

Girl becomes Slayer, the chosen one. There were battles and wars, vampires, a God or two, a human becoming a pure demon. Along the way, she met a man, well a vampire, who eventually became a man.  
Along the way, she died, again. Longer than the last time she did so. In the process, she felt disconnected from everything and everyone she knew. She was in Heaven after all.  
In one world, she eventually made her way back in the world, almost a full year. Through trials and tribulations, one very ill thought affair with a certain vampire without the backbone of communication that brought them together.  
In another world, she found her way back sooner. Into the arms of the man she loves.

For want of a nail, by turning to the left instead of the right, some self care after a traumatic event goes a long way.

* * *

 

The chosen one, the Slayer, the girl who died twice over. The woman who was pulled from Heaven, wandering around in her former land, ravaged by demons hell-bent on destruction. The woman, whose fear was being buried alive, had to do the unimaginable.

* * *

 

  
“147 yesterday,” Spike held Buffy’s hands, burden with proof from her clawing her way out of her grave. They looked in time to see each other. “148 days today. But, today doesn’t count. How long was it for you?”  
“Longer.”  
“You don’t have to say, in your own time.”  
Buffy looked towards Spike, her face still blank. She inched closer to him.  
Dawn ran into the room. “I got the stuff.” She handed them over to Spike, moving next to Buffy on the couch.  
For the next several minutes, Spike cleaned up Buffy’s wound, gently spraying the antibiotic and wrapping the dressing. Buffy said nothing, only a hiss to indicate anything worthy of movement.  
When he was finally done, Buffy closed her fingers, as best as she could around him.  
“Buffy,” Dawn said softly, not wanting to disturb the relative calm between them. “Do you wanna get something in you? To eat? It is late, but I can make something.”  
“Anything you want, pet,” Spike supplied. “ _You_ name it.”  
“Take me to my bed.”

* * *

 

Dawn opened the door to her room, which had been untouched since the last time Willow opened the door to undust Buffy’s room. Dawn at the time thought Willow was processing her grief by cleaning, reading very strange books and trying some new spells. If Willow was in front of her right now, she would give her a piece of her mind.  
“It’s the same,” Dawn waved her hand around her. “I-“ She looked between Spike and Buffy, how close they are, even with Buffy still adjusting, to life, really. “Spike, do you wanna stay?”  
Spike turned back to the little bit. “Um, are you sure?”  
“Willow and Tara aren’t here, and, like everyone likes to say, I’m too young to take care of stuff. I need someone who… understands.” Dawn looks to Buffy. “Please?”  
Buffy looked to Spike and nodded.


End file.
